Ablakwa condemns GH¢2.67billion expenditure on ‘dubious’ digitalization initiatives

Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa, has criticized the government’s expenditure in the health sector, emphasizing the alleged dubious spending on digitalization initiatives amounting to GH¢2.67 billion.

In a social media post [X] on Wednesday, April 3, 2024, Ablakwa expressed concern over the state of healthcare in Ghana, highlighting various challenges being faced by medical facilities across the country.

He pointed out the dire situation at Komfo Anokye Teaching Hospital (KATH), where doctors have been struggling without the necessary equipment and resources.

He mentioned that most dialysis machines at KATH have reportedly been broken for several months, while the facility has been without a mammography machine for breast cancer diagnosis for years.

Ablakwa also highlighted the lack of critical medical equipment in other government hospitals, including malfunctioning MRI machines at institutions like 37 and Ridge.

Questioning the government’s priorities, Ablakwa raised concerns over the NHIA’s allocation formula for 2024, which reportedly includes significant funds for various digitalization projects such as biometric ID cards, management information systems, and e-claims processing.

He criticized the NHIA for prioritizing non-core interventions over essential healthcare needs, particularly given the struggling state of the national health insurance scheme and the healthcare system as a whole.

Ablakwa further revealed that a substantial portion of the NHIA’s proposed digitalization expenditure had already been covered by a US$100 million contract awarded in 2017 to Lightwave eHealthcare Solutions Limited.

He questioned the necessity of duplicate spending on digitalization initiatives when critical healthcare needs were left unaddressed, pointing out the apparent misallocation of funds within the health sector.

-citinewsroom